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Thursday, November 19, 2009

Truth Be Told, this game was sent to me for review by the kind folks at Buffalo Games.Truth Be Told, the name of the game really is Truth Be Told.

It's one of those games that in my house, never quite gets played through to the end because such hilarity ensues that my boys, ages 9 and 11, just lose themselves. I should mention that the two of them have turned charades into a contact sport. They get a bit crazy when they're having fun. This is a good thing, though, because it means deep belly laughs and side-splitting guffaws shared as a family.

Truth Be Told is like a personal version of Balderdash AKA Dictionary (another family favorite that gets broken up by goofiness and pee-in-your pants fun). In Balderdash, players try to guess a plausible definition for an obscure word; in Truth Be Told, players try to guess each others' likes and dislikes.

For example, in Truth Be Told, I take the role of "the host" and read a card that says, "Truth be told, I get annoyed by _______." I secretly complete my write on/wipe off fill-in-the-blank card (no wasted paper!) "whiny children."

As I write, each of other the other players write answers on their cards. So DH might write, "When DH doesn't change the empty roll of toilet paper," and one of my boys might guess (answering as me), "When I run out of chocolate."

As the host I then collect the completed fill-in-the-blank-cards and read off the the results. Players consider the responses and vote for what they think is the real answer (all of which have some degree of truth in my hypothetical case).

Points can be scored in several ways: voting for the true answer, getting others to vote for your bluff answer. But again, we didn't get quite that far. That said, the recommended age range for this game is 12 and up, so my boys are a bit young for it. We were in it more for the laughs than the competition, anyway.

So far, we've managed to keep all the write-on/wipe off cards, paddles and markers, which means no scavenging for paper and pencils when we play. It would be nice if it came with some kind of wiper for the boards or a starter pack of tissues for that purpose, assuming you don't want your kids to use their hands or shirts to do the job.

I look forward to trying this out with our cousins over Thanksgiving Break.

From the company: This game retails for $27.99. It is designed for 3-8 players. It is currently available in Buffalo, Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Phoenix and St. Louis, as well as through the Buffalo Games website. It will available nationwide in January 2010.

One more bit: Meet the folks behind Buffalo Games as the Chicago Toy and Game Expo (CHI-TAG) at Navy Pier November 21 and 22. Click to get $2 your admission to CHI-TAG courtesy of my friends at Chicagonista.

This game was sent to me at no cost. This review expresses my opinion and was not influenced, previewed or edited by anyone at Buffalo Games.

6 comments:

I just played Truth be Told at a game night this past weekend for the first time. I was playing with some people I knew and some I didn't. I think halfway through the game I had 1 point because I was just giving silly answers and we were all laughing, that was the best part for me. And yeah, it's a little like Balderdash, but less wordy... or word focused :)

This looks like a good alternative for extended family gatherings to play instead of Flux. We have the Monty Python version and can't play it because some of my nieces and nephews haven't seen it. *scary face*!

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About Me

I've been a dolphin trainer, corporate creativity trainer, and a potty trainer. Now as the mom of brainy teen boys, I write about STEM and STEAM and host #STEMchat on Twitter. PR peeps can reach me at TheMakerMom{at}hotmail.com.